Burger joints and milkshakes
by StupidBolts
Summary: "I've never been to Zaun, what's it like?" The cyborg frowned beneath his mask and looked away, admiring an ornate water feature at the end of one of the streets. "Not nearly as beautiful as this place," he muttered bitterly. "And the people... well, let us just say you are most lucky to have been raised here. You seem like a trustworthy young man."


**WARNING: If the champions here are a little OOC, it's because this is set _before_ the issue with the crystal widget Viktor stole from Jayce, and I imagine Jayce being quite a bit younger and shy than he is in-game. But this is another addition to the weird game with my girlfriend of under-appreciated pairings. **

**Anyhow, don't take it so seriously, guys; it's just a game and fanfiction.**

* * *

"Do you still eat, with all that metal on you?" Viktor lifted his stare from the pavement for a moment, then nodded minutely at Jayce.

"I can eat, yes."

"But do you _need_ to?," the young inventor asked, hands stuffed into his pockets and staring at the cyborg with a confused expression. "I thought you replaced most of your organs with machines, I assumed that meant your stomach as well." Viktor looked away slightly, to nothing in particular, and Jayce automatically felt as though he was annoying the Zaunite professor. "S-sorry, was just curious..."

"I kept my stomach," Viktor said quickly, straightening up. "And my mouth. I didn't want to lose the ability to taste my favourite foods," he explained. The younger scientist blinked, then smiled in understanding.

"Well, what are your favourite foods?," he asked enthusiastically. "Piltover's got every kind of restaurant, if you're hungry now!" The herald shifted his weight from one foot to the other, looking away again. This time Jayce attempted to followed his gaze, but his optics flickered around so quickly it was hard to say. "Uh... _a-are_ you... hungry...?," he mumbled, rubbing his upper arm awkwardly. Viktor's eyes darted back to him, then upwards, clearing his throat slightly and nodding.

"Maybe a burger would be nice...," he offered, and the younger inventor sighed in relief.

"The closest burger joint is down that street there. They do great milkshakes too! A-assuming you can drink, too..."

The Zaunite nodded again. "I do still drink."

"Great!" With that Jayce boldly reached forward and grabbed Viktor's elbow, gently pulling him in the direction of the fast food restaurant he had in mind. Then about half way down the street he lost his nerve and sprung back a few feet, face flushed red. "Sorry! I-I didn't mean-!"

"It's alright," the herald interrupted, calm monotone contrasting with Jayce's flustered chatter. The younger man rubbed the back of his head, opposite hand stuffed in his hoodie pocket, not entirely sure where to look. "Please, lead the way, Jayce." Giving a nervous smile, he obliged, walking slightly in front of the tall cyborg and trying to see the sign for the burger bar. He listened to the metallic _'clunk-clang-clunk-clang'_ of Viktor's steps, while trying not to trip over his own feet and make a bigger fool of himself. He'd read about the great Machine Herald and his work in news articles Heimerdinger had shown him, though the yordle had initially been appalled by Viktor's act of replacing his own body parts with machinery. Jayce thought it was fascinating, but wasn't entirely up to the idea of doing it to himself. Apparently, word of his own work had reached the cyborg and, interested, Viktor had asked to visit his laboratory in Piltover.

Just as he did now, the moment Viktor walked into his lab, the older inventor made Jayce's stomach bubbly and his brain melt. He'd attempted to demonstrate some of his work, but had ended up spewing out complete gibberish and nonsensical apologies. But the herald had been patient, listening intently and watching him closely, which only served to make the young man even more nervous. After a while, Jayce gave up with trying to impress him with his inventions, and offered to give him a tour around the city. He'd almost had a heart attack when he realised it sounded like he was asking the cyborg on a date, and even more so when Viktor accepted.

And god, that _voice_.

"Jayce?" He skidded to a halt and spun around a mite too quickly, making Viktor start in surprise.

"Yes?"

"Is... _this_ the restaurant you were talking about?," he asked, gesturing to the bright red door Jayce had just walked right past, a cartoon burger with a smiley face right in the centre. His face went red again and he coughed a little, looking down at the ground and nodding.

"Mm hm..." Viktor shifted his weight around, and the young inventor had the feeling he was annoying him again.

But to his surprise, the herald merely walked over to the door, pushed it open and stood there expectantly, gesturing inside. "Shall we, then?" Politeness wasn't something that common in a Zaunites, and Jayce had come to believe holding the door open was something a gentleman did for a woman. But he bit back his pride and shuffled in, Viktor quietly following and closing it after them.

They had the aforementioned burgers and milkshakes. Jayce tried several times to start a conversation, but ended up making himself look like an idiot over and over, despite the cyborg's seemingly endless patience. In the end, he made an effort to make sure his mouth was constantly stuffed with food so he wouldn't make the mistake of talking.

Viktor had removed his helmet once they sat down, revealing that the optics behind it were actually embedded into his skull, but the rest of his face was flesh and bone. He tussled his messy black hair around a little, then munched quietly on his food, answering any questions Jayce came up with and politely smiling at any ridiculous or terrible jokes he told. It was an awfully nice smile.

"Erm, anything else you'd like to see?," the younger man asked once they were back to wandering aimlessly around the streets. The cyborg paused and looked around, considering the long rows of shops and stands down every street. He regarded the floors, the buildings, even the rubbish units. Everything was so clean and orderly, so pretty. The technology, culture, attitude and even the people of Piltover were all so neat and tidy, pleasant to see and observe. He sighed, unnoticed beneath his helmet. It would've been nice to grow up here.

"Perhaps we could wander for a bit...?," he suggested. Jayce blinked in surprise, then nodded eagerly and hurried to walk along side the cyborg. It was a sunny day, so walking around wasn't unpleasant. He'd taken off his lab gear in favour of a sleeveless hoodie and baggy grey cargo pants, leaving room to appreciate the warm sunshine on his face and arms. He smiled at the calmness of the scenario, quite enjoying how peaceful and quiet Viktor was. Then felt guilty every time he ruined it by opening his big mouth. "You have such a lovely city."

"Y-yeah, it's a great place!," he agreed, in no way inclined to be modest about his wonderful home town. "I've never been to Zaun, what's it like?"

The cyborg frowned beneath his mask and looked away, admiring an ornate water feature at the end of one of the streets. "Not nearly as beautiful as this place," he muttered bitterly. "And the people... well, let us just say you are most lucky to have been raised here. You seem like a trustworthy young man." He spoke like a proud parental figure, and Jayce only now realised Viktor was actually old enough to be his father. The young inventor's mood suddenly deflated. He shouldn't have gotten his hopes up like that. Especially over an older man he'd only personally met that day, who was clearly dedicated to his work. He probably didn't even have time for relationships, particularly with someone like him.

He lowered his gaze to the ground, frowning openly, and apparently Viktor noticed. "Are you alright, Jayce?," he asked, leaning closer to get a better look at him.

"I'm sorry...," he mumbled. "I've obviously been wasting your time." The cyborg blinked, confused by the sudden solemness in Jayce's tone. "My inventions wouldn't interest you, and I had no clear idea of what to show you in my city. I mean, hell, I took you to a _burger joint_ ," he chuckled bitterly, shaking his head.

"It was a good burger joint...," Viktor offered. "Nice milkshakes."

"You're a really polite guy, and obviously really nice," Jayce looked up slowly, offering an embarrassed smile that made Viktor's optics dart around again. He must have been making him uncomfortable. "So, uh, I'm sorry for wasting your time. You'd have probably been better off talking with Heimy instead of me, and- _Vi!_ " Viktor jumped back a few steps in surprised at Jayce's sudden horrified outburst.

"W-what?" The young inventor suddenly grabbed Viktor's arm again, this time hastily pulling him into the nearest shop. "Jayce, w-what-?"

"My friend, Vi! If she sees me walking around with someone she doesn't know she'll never let me hear the end of it- _god_ , why is she coming down _this_ way?!" Viktor stumbled as the younger man suddenly pushed him towards one of the stands in the shop, only for the cyborg to trip over his own feet and crash to the floor, Jayce going down with him. The human shook off the fact they were suddenly on the ground, peering nervously out of the window to watch a pink haired young woman saunter down the street. He raised his eyebrow when he noticed Vi had her arm around a brown haired girl, not immediately recognising her without the enormous hat. "She's on a date with Caitlyn?," he muttered to himself. "Huh. Go figure."

He watched them walk by, neither noticing him peeking out of the window, making him sigh in relief. "God, that was close, I..." He looked down, realising he was straddling Viktor's hips on the ground.

He reared up, scrambling to get up and apologies as soon as possible. "I am _so_ sorry! I really didn't mean to- _uh_ , it was an accident, I didn't-!" Viktor cleared his throat awkwardly, glancing back and worth between Jayce's flushed face and the rest of the store.

"It's alright, nothing to worry about, dorogaya," he assured him as the younger inventor got to his feet. He helped him up, then stood squirming on the spot as Viktor brushed himself off.

After more frantic apologising, they decided it best to return to Jayce's work shop, where the young man apologised even more. "I'm really, _really_ sorry! I honestly wasn't thinking, I'm really-!" His spirit wavered even more when Viktor finally rose his hand, gesturing for him to hush.

" _Please_ , Jayce, you really have nothing to apologise for," he assured him. "You showed me your wonderful lab, your ingenious inventions, not to mention your beautiful city." He leant heavily on his staff, tilting his head, and Jayce could just imagine that polite, dulcet smile underneath. "So, spasibo, for such a lovely time." The younger scientist stared at the cyborg in a moment of stunned silence, then smiled slightly, still not looking convinced. Viktor glanced at the clock. He needed to get to the station soon, he'd need to wrap this up. "Now, I'm afraid I must be on my way." Jayce nodded, accepting the cyborg's offered hand and shook it.

"Okay, but... I'm still sorry for putting you into that position, that was just stupid of me..."

"Not at all," the herald replied, bowing and walking towards the door. "We should do it again some time."

Jayce's eyebrows raised in surprise. "Go and walk around Piltover again?," he asked hopefully, spirit rising.

"Well, yes," the cyborg replied, half way out the door. "Although I actually meant getting into that position again." And with that, he gave a quick wave and hurried out without glancing back. "Der'mo, going to miss my train...," he muttered, breaking into a jog.

* * *

 **Translations; Dorogaya – sweetheart**

 **Spasibo – thank you**

 **Der'mo – crap.**


End file.
